Mickey's Comeback
by TheImpossiblyAwesomeWriter
Summary: Disney is dying, ever so slowly. There's no evil forces this time, it's just being forgotten. Day-to-day life in the cartoon world goes on, but characters long for better times. When Goofy suggests an adventure that turns into a wild ride, Mickey finds two forgotten characters from Disney's past. With their help, can he restart the House of Mouse and get Disney back on its feet?
1. Did Goofy Just Have a Good Idea?

**Hey guys, this is the ImpossiblyAwesomeWriter here with my fourth fanfiction story. This is a prequel to my upcoming story 'House of Mouse and Rabbit', which is about a new and rebooted House of Mouse. In this story, after decades of fading away, Mickey fights to become known again, and survive the ever disappearing world of Disney. Rated K+ for dark/depressing themes and cartoon violence.**

Mickey woke up and stretched. Yawning, he jumped out of bed, eager to start the new day. Well, he wasn't really all that eager. And he hadn't been for a while.

Hidden underneath the cheery atmosphere of his Disney cartoon land was a dark and dismal truth. They were fading. Disney was dying, ever so slowly. Over the years, many characters had been forgotten, and the remaining ones turned into icons. Soon it would be no more.

This knowledge plagued everyone's sub consciousness, although they rarely thought about it. Things seemed so happy in the cartoon world it was sometimes hard to remember.

But every once in a while, character's stopped being seen. Their houses disappeared from the block, and all signs or remnants of them just faded away. People probably would've cared more, but, the strangest thing was, they had trouble remembering those who had gone. Thinking back upon the past, at some point, they couldn't even remember who they'd forgotten at all. That is, if there had been anybody to be forgotten, as they couldn't remember that either. It was all a very confusing business.

However, day-to-day life went on as always, if a little bit drearier than before. Mickey liked to head down to the gentleman's club and play cards or pool with his friends Goofy and Horace. Or at least he used to. No one had seen Horace in a while. And Goofy wasn't exactly very good at cards, or pool, or most things, making winning against him only too easy and even a little bit boring. But it was something to do, and something was better than nothing.

Reaching the small club, he swung open the double doors, and tossed his coat and cap on the rack. Goofy was already there, holding a cue stick up to his eye and examining it carefully. When Mickey walked in, he jumped in surprise and jammed it into his eyeball.

"Ow! Gawrsh, that hurt! Mickey, you shoulda let me know you were coming!"

"Sorry Goof," apologized the mouse. "Didn't realize I would startle you. Up for a game of billiards?"

"I dunno," replied Goofy. "I've been feeling distracted lately, like there's something else I've been meanin' to do. Ya know what I mean?"

"Not really," said Mickey. "What _do _you mean?"

"I dunno!" said Goofy again. "What should I mean?"

Mickey chuckled. "I'd say that's for you to figure out. Now, how about some billiards?" They started a game, with Mickey winning easily, knocking every ball in perfectly. Goofy was playing even worse than usual.

"Hey Mickey," he said when they'd finished up a second round. "How 'bout, well, how 'bout goin' on an adventure? Like we used to, in the old days?"

"What kind of adventure?" asked Mickey. It'd been a while since he'd done anything exciting, so the very idea of it made him reluctant to try. "Gosh, it's been a long while."

"I know!" exclaimed Goofy. "Things are getting boring around here! Let's go somewhere, someplace we haven't been in awhile!"

"Like where?" questioned the mouse.

This made the cartoon dog think for a while. "How 'bout that city? That city where you used to host that show. Boy, those were good times!"

Mickey looked confused for a minute, and then realization dawned. "That show? You mean the House of Mouse!"

"Yeah! That! Assuming the building's still standin', we could head there!"

"Goof, we'd have to take the journey on foot, and it's pretty lengthy. A bit dangerous in some parts too. Minnie and I used to have a private helicopter, and an apartment there in the city, and there was the limo service…." He trailed off. "Wow, things have really died down. Alright, we'll go. Just to check it out. What say we meet here on Saturday, bright and early in the morning?"

"Saturday?" exclaimed Goofy. "Saturday?! I can't wait that long. A'yuck. Heck, I'm gonna go now. You can take yer time and pack yer bags all ya want, but I'm headin' out now! Catch up to me, will ya?"

Mickey nodded, and with that, Goofy was gone, off in what was most likely the wrong direction. Mickey gulped and then headed back to his house. He had no idea how he would break the news to Minnie. She probably wouldn't take it very well.

But that didn't matter right now. He was ready, ready for his first adventure in more than a decade, and his first _real _adventure in a long, long time. The mouse started whistling as he walked down the sidewalk. This could turn out pretty good.

**Thanks for reading! What'd you guys think? Please leave a review. I'll update this as soon as I update my other stories, so hopefully in about a week.**

**~TheImpossiblyAwesomeWriter **


	2. Good-byes

**Chapter 2: Good-byes**

**Hi everyone, I've gotten twenty views on this story. Thanks readers! This update was quicker than expected as I've decided to write this story by uploading two chapters every time I update it. **

Mickey dashed out of his house. He'd quickly packed a duffel bag with an extra pair of his trademark red overalls, lots of cheese, a rain coat, and a map. It was time to head out. All he needed to do was make a quick stop over at Minnie's to say good-bye and tell her where he was going.

He hopped up the stairs on her front porch and rang the doorbell. As he waited for her to answer the door, he straightened his tail and combed his hair with his hand. "Mickey?" asked Minnie, opening the door. "Mickey! Hello!" Then she noticed the duffel bag. "Oh, what's that for?"

Mickey, suddenly a little embarrassed to admit his arrangement with Goofy, blushed. "Oh, nothin, y'know. Goofy just had some crazy idea for an adventure and I figured I'd tag along. Stopped over here ta say good-bye real quick. Ha ha!"

Minnie frowned. "Mickey, you're in your eighties, and about the oldest mouse in existence. Are you sure you don't wanna just take it easy, enjoy the rest of your life?"

Mickey also frowned. "Minnie, I know it's been awhile since anything's happened around here, but it's time we did something! Our cheery existence is _fading_. For all we know, it might be gone soon. Might as well take this chance while it's still there. Slam your foot in the door o' opportunity right as it's closin', ya know."

Minnie wasn't convinced. "Things aren't as safe as they used to be out there, Mickey," she warned. "Where are you going?"

"Back to the House of Mouse!" he exclaimed. "Sure, it might be a long journey, but, what else am I supposed to do?"

"Stay here and live a peaceful life beating Goofy at billiards," she replied. "Mickey Mouse, this is nonsense! Don't go!"

"It's a little late for that, Minnie," admitted the mouse. "Goofy's already left, and if I don't catch up to him, he's liable to walk smack dab into a quicksand pit or somethin'! I've gotta go now."

"No you don't!" said Minnie sharply. "Forget about Goofy, and forget about this adventure business. It's no good!"

Mickey was genuinely annoyed now. "Forget? Forget about it? Gosh darn it, I'm sick of forgettin'! Seems like that's all I've been doing lately. Forgetting old friends, forgetting old times, and forgetting the great life I used to have! I won't forget anything anymore! I'm goin'." And with that, he turned around, and walked back out to the street, nose up in the air.

As he started to walk down the street, Minnie called out after him. "Wait!"

The mouse looked back. "What?" he asked, grimacing.

"If you're really gonna go, then I'll come with you. Just give me a minute to pack my bags. And since we'll probably be gone a while, we better visit Donald before we leave. Poor old duck. I insist upon it!"

Mickey grinned.

* * *

Donald, or at least the shadow of its former self that used to be Donald, had won himself a permanent stay in the county jail. He hadn't committed any crime, so to speak, but the decades of living in a peaceful yet grim and limbo-like existence had really taxed his brain.

And mental decline combined with a psychotic temper like his didn't result in anything good. After hatching a plot to liven things up by murdering a couple cartoons here and there, he'd been locked up both for his own safety and for everyone else's, thankfully before anyone got hurt.

Ever since that incident, which had happened just a year or two ago, he'd turned into a shadow of his former self, as mentioned before. The only people who regularly visited him were his grieving girlfriend Daisy, his old pals Goofy and Mickey, and occasionally Minnie.

On this particular day, Minnie and Mickey walked in together. They passed Chief O'Hara, the commander in chief, and really the only policeman of the small cartoon town. As usual, he was snoozing at his post, a half-eaten doughnut in one hand.

On their way to Donald's cell, they passed Pete and Mortimer. After a string of kidnappings and thefts a few years back, the duo had been charged and arrested. Chief O'Hara and a few others knew that the two were in no way to blame, but there was no other explanation, so they were arrested just to keep the peace. The Disney villains were due to have been released three months after the initial arrest, but the toons around town, who were for the most part a bunch of cowards and scaredy-cats, had insisted on keeping them in jail. And Chief O'Hara had relented. So now the two sat on wooden benches, heads in their hands, living out a sad and lonely life.

As the two mice passed by, Pete glowered, but Mortimer didn't even bother to lift his head and just let out a mournful sigh.

Past them was Donald. He sat on his bench, staring straight ahead at the wall in the opposite cell. There was nothing there to stare at, but it was pretty clear his thoughts were no longer in this world.

"Donald?" asked Minnie, peering through the bars. "We've come to visit you." There was no response or any sign of recognition from the duck. "We might be gone a while, so we thought we'd stop by and say hello."

"Yeah!" exclaimed Mickey. We're goin' on an adventure, just like back in the ol' days! Remember those, Don? Don?" As usual, the duck continued to stare blankly ahead. "We're goin' back to the city, Don. Back to the House of Mouse."

At the words 'House of Mouse', Donald stirred a little. He turned his head to look at Mickey and his bill moved. At first no sound came out, but then a barely audible "Mickey?" was heard. Then the duck went back to staring at the wall and there was no more sign of life from him.

* * *

Mickey and Minnie walked out of the small police station. Visiting Donald always made their hearts heavy, bringing a tear to their eyes, and a lump in their throats, but this time there were at least a little happy that he'd shown some sign of life. He'd said his first word in a long while, not counting the gibberish he sometimes spewed for seemingly no reason.

Minnie shook her head clear and changed the subject. "So, how long ago did Goofy head off?"

Mickey thought about it, and checked his watch. "Boy, about two hours ago. We better get started if we're gonna catch up to him anytime soon. Let's go!" He dashed down the street, and couldn't help but chuckle happily a little. His life was back on track, at least for now.

**Thanks for reading, and please take a little bit of time to review. See ya later!**


	3. Off We Go!

**Chapter 3: Off We Go!**

**Hey everyone, I've gotten over 150 views on this story and I've reached 2,500 words. Thanks to all who have stuck with it thus far! (I do not own Disney or its characters)**

Mickey and Minnie had walked out of the town on the east end. Every once in a while they'd see the odd toon, but for the most part it was all fields and meadows. As they followed a thin game trail through a field of corn, they saw a black shack over to their right. That was where Daisy had lived, ever since Donald had been locked up. She only ever came to town to visit him, and those visits had grown far and few between. One young toon, who'd snuck up on the house, said she was starving herself to death. Some people thought she was just forgetting to eat, but most believed she'd just lost the will to live. It was a sad thing indeed.

"Ya know," said Mickey. "Why don't we go over ta Daisy's, an' say hello an' all?" Minnie nodded quietly.

A few minutes later, Mickey hopped up to the door and rang the bell, with Minnie close behind. After a long pause, Daisy answered. She was dressed all in black, apparently still mourning the loss of Donald, or at least the loss of his sanity. "Hello?" she asked. "Oh. Mickey."

"Hiya Daisy, we were just in the area and we'd thought we'd, you know, drop by and say hello. We're off goin' to the House of Mouse again."

"Um-hmm," said Daisy. 'Well, that's nice. Anything else?"

Mickey thought for a moment. "Um, oh! About Donald! He seemed to be a little better when we visited him, why, just a few hours back! Yeah, marvelous improvement and all."

"That's nice, very nice, very nice indeed. Good-bye now." And with that, she slammed the door and refused to come back out, no matter how many times Mickey rang the bell.

* * *

The next few hours passed by without them seeing anyone. They walked through endless fields of crops and wheat, with the occasional meadow to break the monotony.

Minnie began panting as they climbed a steep hill. "Mickey, how much farther is it? I can't take this much longer."

"Dunno," replied the mouse. "Lemme check the map." He pulled it out of his small duffel bag and opened it up upside-down. He tried a couple different positions and eventually ended up holding it right-side up. Then, it still took him a while to make sense of it. "Er, well, there's good news and bad news. Which d'ya wanna hear first?"

Minnie sighed. "The good news."

"Okay then, we've got about ninety miles to go."

"Ninety miles?! That'll take us ages! Days, or even weeks! Sleeping on the cold hard ground every night! Mickey Mouse, that's no good news at all!"

"It is compared to the bad news," admitted Mickey. "Bad news is, that ninety miles is just ta get s out o' these fields. After that, there's a bunch more to go, and none of it's as good as theses fields here. First and foremost, there's the Haunted Mansion."

"Haunted Mansion? We are turning around right now. Mickey, face it, we're not cut out for adventures. Even back in the early days, we never did stuff like go in haunted mansions!"

"Actually, I did a couple'a times, ya know."

"Well, you were certainly very foolish to do so, and lucky you got out alive. We shouldn't tempt death again! Let's go."

"Wait!' said Mickey. "There's a house up ahead. We can stop there for tonight and head back tomorrow morning."

Minnie crossed her arms. "Fine."

The two walked up the path for a little while more, and took a cut off into the yard of the tiny house. It was more of a cottage really, made of yellow stone and red brick. The roof was completely straw. Mickey walked up, and for the third time that day, rang a door bell. The door opened, and of all cartoons, Clarabelle Cow poked her head out.

"Well I'll be!" she exclaimed. "Mickey and Minnie Mouse! It's been positively ages! How come you never visited?"

"Uh, do you live here?" asked Minnie uncertainly, completely surprised.

"Course I do," replied Clarabelle. "I've been here quite a while, now. Moved out back when everything in town was getting' dull and boring. I wanted my own little bit o' excitement, and I figured here must be the place. But, heavens above, it certainly ain't! It's as borin' out here as a piece of wheat. Heck, pieces of wheat is all there is around here! Shucks."

"Well, why didn't you move back to town?" asked Minnie. "We've certainly missed you."

"I wanted to, but I got this weird feeling you know, like I couldn't even make the walk back. Fading, I guess. Sure felt that way. Wanted some solitude, too. Anyway, what brings you two all the way out here?"

"Oh," began Mickey. "It's a long story. Ya see, it all started with Goofy having this idea- - -"

Minnie quickly interrupted him. "What he means to say is, we're pretty tired and we're looking for a place to stay the night. Do you have any room here?"

"Sure I do, sure I do! There's plenty of room up in the loft, if ya don't mind the hay everywhere. Comes with having a straw-roofed house, you see. Hay, hay, always hay, everywhere the eye can see. So, you all look absolutely ex-haus-ted, if I do say so myself. Get some rest and you can tell me your story in the mornin', bright an' early." The two thanked her and headed on in.

* * *

Mickey rubbed his eyes and stood up, bumping his head on the ceiling. He looked around and found himself in the empty loft. Minnie was nowhere in sight. He got up and climbed down the small ladder to the first floor. He entered Clarabelle's dining room, to find Minnie sitting at the table, weary-eyed, eating a small breakfast. Clarabelle was sitting two chairs away, sipping tea. Mickey pulled out a chair and took his seat.

"Mornin' Mickey," said Clarabelle. "Was the loft nice and comfy?"

"Yeah, yeah, definitely," he assured her. "It was great." She nodded and continued to sip her tea. Mickey stood up, grabbed a muffin from the counter, and began to eat it. After he and Minnie had finished their breakfasts, Clarabelle clasped her hands and grinned.

"So," she began. "You never did get to answer my question yesterday, what with you being tired and all. What brings you out here? It's certainly a good day's walk through the countryside, and folks don't do stuff like that often."

Minnie looked nervously at Mickey, but he ignored her. "Well, Goofy had this idea, as I was sayin' yesterday. He wanted to head out on an adventure, a real good one, like we used to have back in the old days. He set off right away, in fact, he shoulda passed by here. Did'ja see him?"

"I sure did" answered the cow. "Walked right by and didn't even bother to drop in and say hello. Hmmph. Honestly, what a goof!"

"Haha, he is Goofy after all, Clarabelle," said Mickey. "So, I was all set on comin' along, but I needed a little time to get all my stuff ready. Then I convinced Minnie to come with, and after a visit with our ol' pal Donald, we headed off!"

"I'm liking this story!" said Clarabelle enthusiastically. "Where are you heading? What marvelous adventure has Mickey Mouse gotten himself into this time?"

"Well, we figured we'd head back to the House of Mouse, ya know."

"But that's a pretty dangerous journey on foot, I hear. Back when we used to live mostly in the city, and you had transportation an' all it wasn't that bad. But on foot?! Why, this may be the most exciting adventure you've ever had! And so, that really leaves me only one thing to do. To come with you!"

Minnie hastily broke in to the conversation. "Well, you see Clarabelle, it is rather far and a tad more on the dangerous side than we're comfortable with anymore, so we were actually gonna turn around and head ba- - -"

"Nonsense!" Clarabelle interrupted her. "Don't be silly Minnie, you're goin', sure as my names Clarabelle Cow! It is Clarabelle Cow, right? Woulda hated to mess up that fine detail! Now, let's get a move on!"

She strode straight out the front door and started up the path, leaving Mickey and Minnie no choice but to follow her, the former glad to do so.

They hiked through field after field the entire day, with no sign of any other living creature at all. They paused for a break once the sun started to go down. "I wonder what happened to Goofy," yawned Minnie. "We should've caught up to him by now."

"He had a couple hours head start on y'all, remember that," said Clarabelle. "And, he walks pretty fast compared to us slowpokes. We should catch up to him tomorrow." The others agreed, and they rolled out sleeping bags and nodded off.

**I hope everyone enjoyed. Please review! Also, would you rather see a couple of Clarabelle and Goofy or Clarabelle and Horace? Let me know! I'll try to update the day after tomorrow or so. See you then, and thanks for reading!**


	4. The Final Fields

**Chapter 4: The Final Fields**

**Hey guys, sorry about the long time in between updates. What can I say? Vacation is as vacation does. Anyway, I've reached 400 views and 5,000 words. Before the story starts, I just have one guest review to reply to.**

**Guest: **Thanks, I'm glad you like it! Geez, I didn't even realize this story was suspenseful. I guess a little maybe. Hope you enjoy this chapter!

* * *

The next morning, Mickey awoke a good deal earlier than Minnie and Clarabelle. He forced himself to open his eyes and get up, which is no easy task after sleeping on the hard ground for a night. He ached everywhere.

Mickey focused his bleary eyes on the trail in front of him and noticed a dot far off in the distance. Could it be? He shuffled towards it, slowly getting closer. As he neared what had originally been just a speck on the horizon, he began to make some features out. Cat-like ears. A stubbly beard. Overalls. It was Pete.

"Wha, what are you doing out here, Pete?" asked Mickey. "I thought you were back, ya know, back in town…." he trailed off as Pete gave him an angry look.

"I'd be real careful if I were you, Mickey Mouse," said Pete quietly. "Bad things are comin'. And I just might be one o' them!" He then gave his signature laugh, which sounded a little more sinister than usual. "You can run, but you can't hide!" laughed Pete. But then he changed from Pete to Donald, who glared at Mickey and shook his head sadly.

"Donald?" Mickey was utterly confused. "What's going on?" Donald continued to shake his head as he grew more and more transparent, eventually transforming into a ghost, who wailed right at Mickey, terribly loud, making every hair on the tiny mouse's body stand on end.

The ghost eventually ceased his cries and transformed into a still rather ghostly Scrooge McDuck. "Mickey Mouse," said Scrooge ominously, pointing his cane at the cartoon's nose, "I've come to you with a message from beyond the grave. Things may look bleak now, but the worst is yet to come. Being a goody two-shoes has saved your life before, but this time it may be your demise. Hard choices await you, Mouse. And I for one do not believe you have the courage to face them."

"What? But I do!" cried Mickey. Then his eyes bulged out of his sockets as he spotted something behind Scrooge. All around them, in fact, was what could only be described as a cross between a tornado and a black hole, enveloping the land, closing in quickly.

"You do?" growled Scrooge. "We'll see about that!" He chortled a little, and then burst out laughing as the ominous twister-like thing swirled around them. As he was swallowed up by it, he yelled a few last words, but the only one Mickey could make out was 'grave'. Then the thing was upon him and he fell down, screaming….

* * *

….only to jerk back up. He was sitting in his sleeping bag, on the path surrounded by fields. Minnie and Clarabelle were still sleeping next to him, the latter snoring loudly. It had all been a dream. Except it'd been something a little more than a dream. Like an omen.

There was no sign of Scrooge or of the land being swallowed up. But there was a speck in the distance, just like there'd been in his dream. Fearing the worst, Mickey quickly shook the other two awake. "Minnie, Clarabelle, we're in big trouble here! Look at the dot on the horizon! It's just like the one in my dream! Something real bad is gonna happen. Quick! We've gotta get outta here."

As Mickey continued to panic and hyperventilate, Clarabelle pulled a spyglass out of her pocket and held it up to her eye. "Mmm hmm," she muttered, looking down the path. "That ain't nothing dangerous, Mickey. It's Goofy!"

Mickey, who was still ranting about unknown dangers, immediately shut up. "Is it really Goofy?" asked Minnie.

"Without a doubt!" replied Clarabelle, grinning. "Let's hurry and catch up to him." She took off and the two mice quickly followed.

Goofy was ambling along rather slowly, so they soon reached him. When they were about twenty feet away, the anthropomorphic dog heard the footsteps and turned around. "Gawrsh Mickey, you made it! And, a'yuck, ya brought company too!"

"Ha ha!"" laughed Mickey. "Guess you didn't get lost after all. Boy, things are sure goin' swell!" After Clarabelle and Minnie had greeted Goofy and the conversation had gone on for awhile, the four of them started to walk on at the same time.

For the most part, nobody talked and it was very silent. That entire day they walked past field after field of wheat, corn, and the occasional fruit. There were no farmers to tend the crops, and nobody except for the random traveler ever ate them or made any use of them. They certainly were a strange phenomenon. Perhaps, in ancient times long forgotten, the crops had been planted and abandoned, and new generations had sprung up again year after year. Or possibly not even new generations. The crops had never been known to die during the winter, or at all. They also never grew on the paths, but covered everywhere else. It was really rather eerie.

But the four travelers didn't mind. They just continued their adventure. Day in and day out, they walked endlessly through endless fields. Mickey lost track of where they were on the map, all he was sure of was that following the path would eventually lead them to the Haunted Mansion. Days became weeks, and weeks stretched to a full month. Their food supplies had run out, but they were able to eat the fruit and corn all around them. Since meeting up with Goofy, the four had seen no one, saw no sign of any man-made things, not even litter, and had seen nothing natural either, such as a game path or a stream. Just field after field. It was monotonous and creepy. They all took consolation in the fact that they were nearing the end, though.

One day, thirty-four days into the adventure, they finally happened upon a side path. It was narrow and rocky, branching off to the left side of the main trail and curving out of sight. "Somethin' looks awfully familiar about this place," said Goofy. "I'm gonna check it out, a'yuck!" Amid the other's protests, he stepped off the trail and followed the path, leaving Mickey, Minnie, and Clarabelle no choice but to follow him. The path wound on for a while, and then emerged into a circular clearing, with various old junk lying around.

"Gawrsh, I do remember this place!" exclaimed Goofy. "This is where we had the party back when our dear ol' cartoon town was founded, and everybody who's anybody was headin' on in. Ah, good times, good times. I'm gonna poke around for a bit." He walked over to a rusty table with two of its legs snapped off. Stooping low to the ground, his eyes brightened. "Why, I don't believe it! Lookit this! It appears to be a piece of that fine cake we had. And after all these decades too, just lyin' here! What're the odds?" He picked it up and swallowed it, much to the other three's disgust. "Just as good as new! That Gus Gooses was a fine cook, even if he did try an' keep all the food fer himself."

Suddenly, something in the corn around them growled, and the stalks rippled as whatever it was circled around. "Uh, what's that?" asked Mickey nervously. Another growl came from out of sight, and the four dashed to the path leading back. But the creature beat them to it and stood just out of sight, growling and coming closer. They couldn't see it, but they were scared to death just thinking of what it might be.

"Quick!" hissed Minnie. "Run into the corn. It'll never be able to track us and we can meet up back at the main path. Go!" Everyone heeded her suggestion and they scrambled into the corn, all in different directions. The unseen creature growled again and gave chase.

Three minutes later, Goofy burst out onto the path, panting heavily, with his heart beating extremely fast. Just a few seconds later, Clarabelle emerged from the tall corn a few yards away. She spotted him and ran over. "Looks like we escaped the beast. Boy, I haven't had that much excitement in ages!"

Goofy nodded. "Say, where're Mickey and Minnie?"

* * *

Minnie headed straight back towards the path, but running straight isn't a good way to lose pursuit. The creature followed her and she could hear it sniffing and snuffling behind her. Then it pounced. She grabbed at its fur and a yellow tuft came off in her fingers. The beast yelped and ran away. Minnie got up and walked in a daze back onto the path, meeting up with Goofy and Clarabelle.

* * *

Mickey had immediately lost all sense of direction after leaving the clearing, and stumbled away in the opposite direction. The wrong direction. He kept going, pushing against the corn stalks, which seemed to be growing thicker and thicker, harder and harder to get through. Stopping to catch his breath, they seemed to close around him and the wind blowing through them seemed to make them whisper.

_'Mouse. Kill. Mouse. Die.' _was what he could make out. '_Mouse. Vanish. Mouse. Fade. Mouse. Lost. Mouse. Gone.' _In front of him, a corn cob popped up and grew eyes. Then a nose, mouth, and two familiar circular ears, followed by a mouse's body and tail. "I'm Steamboat Willie!" cried the corn. "Watch me fade! AAAAAAAAAAH!" The thing continued screeching as the image of the mouse dissolved bit by bit, the eyes and mouth being the last to go, showing intense agony.

"Stop it. Stop it!" cried the real Mickey. "It's all lies!" he screamed at the corn, which seemed to smirk at him. A wave of anger came over the famous mouse, and he grabbed the corn stalk, ripping it out of the earth.

The corn to one side of him rippled, leaned, and bent, forming a trail leading straight back to the main path. Mickey hurried along it, nearly colliding with Goofy as he reached the end.

"Oof!" cried the goof. "Gawrsh, Mickey! You made it!" The mouse was pulled into a tight hug from Minnie and Clarabelle, who were extremely relieved, thinking he'd been nearly eaten by the beast and just barely escaped. What had actually happened he kept to himself.

* * *

Two days later, another speck on the horizon appeared. A much bigger, darker, and scarier speck. It was the gigantic Haunted Mansion, still several miles away. Just the sight of it sent a shiver up their spines.

Mickey sighed and took another step. "Gosh, there's no turnin' back now," he said.

"Maybe there is," said Minnie.

The mouse frowned. "Not having second thoughts again, now are we Minnie?"

"Mickey, I'm not trying to hinder this quest in any way. Nor am I being cowardly. I've thought for a while, and I've realized we can't all go off on adventures. Someone needs to take care of things while you're gone. Take care of Daisy, and Donald, and all the extras in town who have no idea what to do. The world needs you, Mickey. But the town? It needs me."

Mickey sighed again. Minnie was right. After a quick good-bye, she turned around, somewhat sadly, and headed back. Goofy and Clarabelle waved as Mickey just stood there glumly. Then the three remaining travelers headed towards the Haunted Mansion.

**What'd you think? Leave a review and share your thoughts. I appreciate constructive criticism and consider all suggestions. Who/what do you think the creature in the corn was? And what adventures lay waiting in the Haunted Mansion? Find out when I update again, in a week or two. If you enjoyed this, follow and favorite!**

**~TheImpossiblyAwesomeWriter**


	5. The Haunted Mansion Part 1

**Chapter 5: The Haunted Mansion Part 1**

**Hey everyone, here's my favorite chapter thus far! The Haunted Mansion is going to take longer than I thought, about three to five chapters. This chapter's pretty short, but the rest should be longer.**

After saying good-bye to Minnie; Mickey, Goofy, and Clarabelle approached the gate of the Haunted Mansion. The grounds in front of them were full of black dead grass, crooked trees, and the occasional crumbling gravestone. It was if the whole place was twelve hours ahead, because it sure looked like night. They could see things moving around the house, but from the distance they were at they had no idea what they were.

As for the mansion itself, it was impossibly huge, even from half a mile away. Seven cracked pillars supported a balcony out over the front porch. The areas that were painted were painted black. Above the balcony were countless windows, most of them shattered, but one or two showed a light on inside. Around the sixth or seventh story the house started getting narrower as the roof sloped in, eventually coming to a crooked point with a tiny weather vane on top. Somehow they could see from their current position that it was topped with a skull. A huge iron gate stood directly in front of them, one of the doors creaking back and forth in the wind. A tall stone wall ran in either direction for as far as the eye could see.

"Uh, why don't we just go around?" asked Goofy, already starting to follow the wall.

"No," said Mickey, stopping him. "Goin' around means goin' through the crops, and that's just asking for trouble. I say we stay out of them. I get the feeling that if we went in there, we wouldn't come out again." He stepped up to the gate, gulped, pushed the other side of it open, and stepped inside. Immediately he felt cold and awful, and he beckoned for Goofy and Clarabelle to follow as he shivered.

The three of them didn't say a word as they trod through the dead grass. After being enclosed in by tall crops for so long, being out in the open felt weird and even creepy. Although the Haunted Mansion probably wasn't helping. With every step they took their fear of being spotted by some malicious and terrible creature increased, until it became too much for Clarabelle.

"I don't like this one bit," she declared. "Just standin' around, walking up to a place with more ghosts in a room than there are feathers on Donald. Let's find a better way of getting' there."

The other two agreed that they needed to at least approach stealthily. Goofy got down on his knees and his companions followed suit. They crept along as silently as possible, going more and more slowly. At one point a white whoosh of wind zoomed by them.

"Was that a ghost?" asked Goofy, pointing up while keeping his head down.

"Sure thing," said Clarabelle. "Why, I had a friend who had a friend who had a great-uncle who knew a ghost once. But they don't make good company. Invite 'em over for tea and whenever they try an' sit down, they go right through the furniture!"

Her voice was loud enough to scare the others to death thinking she'd give them away to any more nearby ghosts, and Mickey quickly shushed her. The anthropomorphic cow looked disgruntled for a second, but then they continued moving.

* * *

After an hour of crawling the only other incident they'd had was when Goofy didn't look where he was going and banged his head against a tree stump. They got within fifty feet of the mansion before Mickey's keen eyes noticed the shapes they'd seen moving all the way back at the gate. It was three scary-looking lions, who were pacing around the front steps. Guards.

"Shucks, do we have ta sneak past them?" asked Goofy fearfully.

"Let's not," said Mickey. "Look over there. It's an outhouse or something. Let's head to it." He was talking about a little wooden structure that was rotting away and barely still standing, a good deal over to their left and a little behind them.

After a few more minutes of army crawling again, they reached the shed (for that's what it was), stood up, and quickly went inside, closing the door behind them. It had apparently once housed many tools, but now all that was left were several rusty pitchforks and a saw. There were several red stains on the tools and on the floor, which they tried not to think about. Other than that the shed was empty.

"Sure is creepy in here, a'yuck!" said Goofy nervously. "What do we do now?"

"I dunno," said Mickey uncertainly. "We could wait here a while and see if the lions go away."

Goofy nodded his head and walked over to a corner, trying to look through a hole in the decomposing wood to see if the guards were still there. Before he could focus his vision, however, he fell down as the old floor collapsed. The dog landed hard on a dirt floor, and looked around him to see rock walls on three sides and a passage leading into the darkness on the other.

"Goofy!" he heard Mickey and Clarabelle cry. Soon their heads appeared above him, looking down from the shed above.

"Where am I?" asked the Goof.

Mickey was still too stunned taking everything in to say anything, but Clarabelle, as usual, always had a few words to put in. "You appear to be in a secret tunnel, my dear Goof. It probably leads to the Haunted Mansion's basement or some other such underground area."

"Well then, let's follow it!" exclaimed Goofy, standing up and brushing himself off.

"Wait!" yelled Mickey. "It might be a trap, it might be a labyrinth, it might be a dead end, we have no idea where it goes!"

"I believe I do," said Clarabelle smugly. "You see, this was probably an escape tunnel used by this mansion's former occupant. Before it was haunted, that is. Everybody had a secret escape tunnel back in those days. Ya know, for emergencies and all."

Mickey thought for a second. "What do ya mean, before it was haunted?"

"Oh, don't be silly, Mickey," laughed Clarabelle. "Nobody builds a mansion just for the sake of getting' it haunted. No, many mansions are lived in for years with one dark secret after another happenin' until some great tragedy kills or scares away everybody in it, and ghosts, werewolves, and things so much worse I won't even mention 'em move in. There are tons o' Haunted Mansions these days, prob'ly 'cause we've had so many great tragedies, both recent and so ancient that we've forgotten what they were ever about. Lemme see, there's the Lonesome Manor, the one with exactly 999 ghosts, and a few in those old amusement parks. ***[1]** But this one's the biggest, the oldest, the creepiest, and the most terrible one. Makes me shiver just thinkin' about it. Let's go."

Before Mickey could protest, she'd hopped down to join Goofy and the two headed off into the dark, leaving the mouse no choice but to follow.

The tunnel was completely dark, and as far as they could tell there were no torches or anything to give light. The trio felt their way along, thankful there were no other tunnels splitting off. They were also very thankful that there were no traps or any supernatural encounters of any kind along the way. After fifteen minutes, Goofy tripped and realized he'd stubbed his toe against the first step in a flight of stairs. They ascended the stairs slowly, wary of accidentally falling off in the darkness. After a little while they reached a door, and Goofy turned the handle and opened it. They were in the Haunted Mansion.

***[1] This is referring to the haunted mansions from Epic Mickey, the Disney movie Haunted Mansion, and the various theme parks, respectively. Just so you know that this is a different one.**

**Thanks for reading! Please leave a review, it'd make my day. As Mickey himself would say, see ya real soon!**


	6. The Haunted Mansion Part 2

**Chapter 6: The Haunted Mansion Part 2**

**Hello Mickey's Comeback readers! Just wanted to let you know that I am super close to 750 views on this story, and thanks for helping me get this far! Check out my other stories sometime.**

The three adventurers were in a large underground room. A single torch lit the area in front of them up, but everything else was completely dark. Stone arches served as support for the ceiling, and the floor was dirt.

"What do we do now?" asked Goofy, chuckling nervously. His chuckle echoed around the cavern, growing louder and louder, and the three huddled together in fear.

"Find a way up and out o' here!" exclaimed Mickey, but as quietly as he could. "Here's the plan. We get to the ground level, sneaking around so as not to be found, and find a back door. Then we hightail it off the grounds." He pulled the map out of his pocket. If we can get out o' here, there's a path leading right through the woods. That's what we have to continue on."

"Gawrsh, that sounds awful simple, but ya never know how things'll turn out," said Goofy, shivering slightly. Mickey shrugged and took a step or two into the dark.

"Uh guys?" he called back, after noticing that Goofy and Clarabelle weren't following him. The two gulped, looked at each other, and joined the mouse. They walked on a while through the dark, afraid of something grabbing them, biting at them, jumping out at them, and even killing them. You could never be sure of anything in a haunted house. Especially this one.

Mickey was in the lead, and he heard something crunch under his foot. He looked down and saw a bone. Not a human bone, or any type of cartoon bone, thankfully. But a very very big bone. He didn't like to think what it might have belonged to, or what other thing would've had the power to kill it. He didn't mention it to Clarabelle and Goofy, and they continued on.

After ages, Clarabelle crashed right into a wall. "Oof! Looks like we've reached the other end."

"We mighta gotten turned around in the dark," said Mickey. "Let's just turn sideways and keep goin'." They heeded his suggestion and walked off in the new direction, with the mouse hurrying behind them.

After a little bit, Mickey noticed he could see the outlines of the other two. In fact, he could see in front of them. Far away was a tiny pinprick of light. "Light ahoy!" he cried, and dashed forward. The dog and the cow ran after him, and they arrived at the source. A rickety old ladder was leaning against the stone wall. About halfway up it ended, right in front of a little gap, from which the light came out of.

"Let's go!" cried Clarabelle. She started pulling herself up the ladder. One or two of the rungs were broken, but she easily skipped them and crawled into the little window, which turned out to be a crawlspace. Mickey followed her, but as soon as he stepped on the first rung, it broke, and the ladder slid sideways.

The famous mouse quickly scrambled up, as mice are good at doing. On his way to the top, the right side of the ladder snapped and detached from the rest, falling over. The remaining part of the ladder titled left and collapsed. Mickey jumped and grabbed the bottom of the gap with his gloved hand, and quickly slipped off. Clarabelle caught his wrist as he fell and pulled him up.

Down below, Goofy lifted the ladder back up and leaned it against the wall. "Here I come!" he said as he took a step up, only for the ladder to immediately crumble and break in two, rendering it completely useless.

Mickey thought fast. "Grab my hand!" he cried as he reached down, but even though Goofy was a great jumper, the anthropomorphic dog still couldn't reach.

"Hang on Mickey," began Clarabelle, "if I grab your ankles and hold you out over him, then he should be able to reach easily." Mickey agreed to this plan and quickly pulled himself farther out.

Somewhere too close for comfort, something roared, followed by a terrible snuffling sound. Whatever it was, it was coming right towards them. Wasting no time, Clarabelle pushed Mickey out of the crawlspace and caught him again, this time by his yellow shoes. Goofy was too frightened to jump at first, but after Clarabelle yelled at him to snap out of it, he came to his senses and leaped.

He didn't make it. The Goof fell back to the ground and lost his balance. He stood up quickly and jumped again, this time catching Mickey's hand. Clasping it with the other, Goofy braced his legs against the wall and readied himself to be pulled up.

And the roaring creature charged at them, out of the darkness. Clarabelle yanked, Mickey yanked, Goofy screamed, and the dog came flying into the crawlspace just as a huge reptilian shoulder rammed against the wall. The three travelers quickly hurried on.

* * *

After two bends, the crawlspace came to an end in the form of a vent. Mickey pushed it open, and then winced as it clattered against the floor on the other side. He stepped out and found himself in a hallway. Marble tiling and a red carpet covered the floor, with peach-colored walls and a wooden ceiling. Old electric light bulbs were strung across the ceiling, half of which didn't work.

"Where are we?" asked Goofy, pulling himself out of the vent tunnel and into the hallway. Clarabelle came after him.

"It looks like we're in," said Mickey, tip-toeing down the passageway. They passed a few doors, none of which they dared to open. After a little while, the hallway ended in a big octagonal room. In the middle of the room was a poker table, and playing cards, were three ghosts. The translucent creatures floated into the air as soon as they saw the 'toons.

"Well, well, well, lookie what we have here," said the first smugly.

"A dog, a cow, and a rat," continued the second, counting off on his fingers.

"Looks like they've damned themselves, fellas, walkin' right in on a ghost's game," cackled the third. "After them!"

Mickey, Goofy, and Clarabelle turned tail and ran. The three ghosts flew through the air, laughing gleefully. It was obvious they could catch them, but they didn't at first, like a cat toys with a mouse before eating it.

One ghost passed right through Goofy, and he bent over, shuddering. Clarabelle grabbed his elbow and pulled him along. Mickey, with nothing else coming to mind, opened one of the doors on the side and dived into the next room. It was a tiny passage with an elevator at the end. Not pausing to think about why such a modern thing would be in such an old house, he slammed the up button and the doors opened. He threw himself in with Clarabelle right behind him, and pressed the button for one of the higher floors, the fifth or sixth.

Goofy jumped into the elevator just as the doors started closing, but one of the ghosts grabbed his leg and pulled him back out before the others could even comprehend what was happening.

And the elevator doors slammed shut.

**For those wondering, this is not the elevator from the Tower of Terror, or anything like it. It doesn't really have any scary purpose, as you'll see next chapter. Anyway, what'd you think of this? What do you think the ghosts will do to Goofy? Will Mickey and Clarabelle search for him and try to find the back door? And what was the reptilian creature? (Hint: NOT a dragon.) Review please!**


	7. The Haunted Mansion Part 3

**Chapter 7: The Haunted Mansion Part 3**

**Hey guys, this chapter has a lot more of the thoughtfulness than the last two didn't have. It's pretty short, but I wanted to mostly wrap up the Haunted Mansion and move on. There will be a Part 4 to the mansion, but then we'll move on to the final, more interesting leg of the journey.**

As the elevator doors slowly slid open at the fifth floor, Mickey and Clarabelle braced themselves for the worst. However, they just emerged into another hallway. And standing right in front of them was Scrooge McDuck. He looked a little pale.

"Scrooge?!" exclaimed Mickey. "But, wha? How? Who?"

The old duck shushed him. "I assume you're wondering why I'm here, out of all times and coincidences. I'll answer that in more detail later, but I will tell you my being here has to do with you. Now come, we're not safe here. Your friend's been captured by ghosts, am I right?"

"Uh, yeah," answered Clarabelle, nodding. "How'd you know?"

"I have my ways," shot Scrooge back mysteriously. "Follow me."

He waddled down the hallway and through a doorway, leaving the others no choice but to follow. They walked into the room where Scrooge sat at a table. He looked even paler than before. "What we do next is your choice. There's a secret passage from this very room that will lead out. It's right behind this little door here. In five minutes you can be out of here and on your way, leaving your friend behind. But if you choose to stay behind and rescue your friend, well, that's a tad more difficult."

Clarabelle looked indecisive, but Mickey slammed his fist down on the table. "We're not leaving without Goofy, no matter what."

"Very well, mouse," said Scrooge. "We may now commence with the rescue operation. But first, I want to show you something." He walked over to the little door that was the beginning of the secret passage, and opened it. Flames roared out, searing the room with intense heat. The old duck quickly slammed it shut again. "That's what you would've stepped into had you decided to abandon your poor friend."

"That would've roasted us!" exclaimed Clarabelle.

"Best be thankful you made the good decision, then."

"Would ya really have killed us?" asked Mickey worriedly.

"What good would you be alive if you weren't pure of heart? I still have doubts about you, mouse, but less so than before. You may just be able to help this lonely world after all. Now, let's go save Goofy."

* * *

Goofy was promptly thrown into a chair and rope lassoed around him, tying him up. The ghost snickered evilly. "What are you gonna do with me?" he asked nervously.

"You'll see," said the first ghost, pulling the rope snug.

"Yeah, you'll see!" guffawed the third ghost.

"Shut up! Don't copy me!" yelled the first ghost, backhanding the third one across the face. The second one chuckled and also received a slap. "Now boys," said the first, "we eat."

"No wait!" cried Goofy. "Ya wouldn't want to eat me! I, uh, I taste like fish!"

"As much as I enjoy fish, we're not going to eat your body. Oh no." said the first evilly.

"We'll eat yo soul!" screamed the second, spinning around in midair. "Dig in!"

Just as all three ghosts flew at Goofy, the same roar from the basement was heard. "Uh oh," said the third ghost. "It's the heir! It's escaped its prison!" All three undead transparent creatures disappeared. Goofy heard another roar, this time closer. The anthropomorphic dog closed his eyes and flinched. The creature entered the room. It was super ugly. The beast was a massive reptilian creature that looked like if someone mixed all sorts of dinosaurs with modern lizards and such. Its head was large and tall, with its lower row of teeth sticking out to the side and its upper row being hard bony plates. Several more plates ran down its back, and its tail was long and spiked.

"Gawrsh, that sure ain't a dragon," said Goofy. The creature roared and he cowered.

* * *

Scrooge exited the room with the other two shortly behind him. He walked down the hallway and into a long spiral staircase. As they climbed down, he began to talk about the lore of the mansion. "You see this whole place here? It was built years ago by a man with a gigantic family. And when I say gigantic, I mean gigantic. That's why the house is so big, so it could fit everyone! But the smallest child, a little boy of two or three, was extremely jealous. He wanted the place to himself, the little blighter. So he murdered all the others and lived here by himself until he grew old and died."

The rich duck shook his head sadly and continued the story. "Then a king found this place and claimed ownership. But the ghosts of all the murdered were vengeful and thought that the king was their littlest brother, so they quickly made him one of them. In his will, the king left the house to his younger son. The older son thought it should rightfully belong to him, however. So, he dabbled in chemistry and potions and the like until he'd turned his brother into a hideous monster. This monsters was like all the reptiles in the world rolled into a ball. Ugly. The older brother's plan was to have the monster terrorize the countryside before he slew it to supposedly save everyone. Obviously the mansion would be his then. But his plan backfired. The monster killed him and still lives in this mansion, down in the basement, to this very day."

"Gosh, that's awful!" exclaimed Mickey.

"That's not the half of it," said Scrooge snidely. "But I wouldn't want to scare you right out of here."

They reached the bottom of the staircase and the old duck opened a door, which squeaked and creaked loudly. Immediately Goofy ran right into him. Having somehow freed himself, he'd dashed away from the beast, which was right around the corner. The door slammed shut behind them, trapping them in a room with only one exit, which led straight to the hideous thing the younger brother had become.

And it was coming closer.

**Thanks for reading! I'd appreciate any reviews or favorites, and I'll try to update soon. Next chapter will reveal a startling secret.**


	8. The Haunted Mansion Part 4

**Here's the next update. It was a long wait for all you readers, but believe me, worth it! Here's one of the more symbolic and thought-provoking chapters in a while. **

The four cartoons could only stare as the beast rounded the corner and walked slowly towards them. It bared its teeth and lunged. Mickey, Goofy, and Clarabelle dove to the sides. Scrooge stood still. Inexplicably, the creature passed right through him and smashed into the stairwell door, splintering the wood.

Goofy leaped over the once-human thing, followed by the other three. They dashed up the spiral stairs. When the creature regained its senses, it chased after them. Its weight was too much for many of the steps to bear, and they crumbled beneath it.

This gave the adventurers an advantage, and they quickly reached the top of the steps, exiting onto the seventh floor landing. Scrooge directed them up a ladder and onto the roof. A thunderstorm had started while they'd been in the mansion, and it raged fiercely around. The four walked single file down a narrow peak between the sides of the steeply slanted roof. Every few steps someone would accidentally knock a few shingles out of place, and they'd slide off the roof to smash on the ground dozens of feet below.

After a bend in the roof, they reached a little tower. Goofy hoisted Mickey onto his shoulders and boosted the mouse on top of it. Mickey grabbed onto the weather vane and steadied himself. It was then that he noticed a wire attached to the top. "What's this?" he cried over the booming thunder.

"A haunted kite string!" yelled Scrooge back. "But for us, it's a zip-line down."

At that moment, the reptilian beast burst through the roof on the other side and pounded along the rain-soaked canopy, en route towards them. Picking up the pace, Goofy practically tossed Clarabelle up, and Scrooge joined her and Mickey shortly after. The anthropomirphic cow reached down a hand and pulled up the Goof.

Mickey ripped off one side of his red suspenders and threw it over the thick string. Clarabelle grabbed it and slid off the peak, zipping down into the storm. Goofy was next, using his own belt. Mickey ripped off his other suspender and his pants fell down. Blushing in embarrasment, he gripped his pants in his teeth and slid away.

Scrooge was all set to follow using his lab coat when the heir beast finally caught up. It crashed into the gable the old deck stood upon and destroyed it. Scrooge was sent flying and landed on one of the slants. The heir had lost its balance and was slipping down towards him. In one motion, the beast swallowed Scrooge and fell over the edge, plummeting to its well-deserved death, unfortunately taking Scrooge with it.

Mickey looked back as he zoomed towards the earth and saw it all. The shock was enough to make him let go, but instead he gripped his red suspender tighter than ever as tears started to fill his eyes.

By the time he reached the ground, the mouse was bawling. He leaned forward on his knees and cried onto the tombstone in front of him. Goofy and Clarabelle had no idea what had happened or the cause for Mickey's outburst of emotion, but they soon guessed it when Scrooge didn't zip-line down after them. The two other explorers also shed many tears.

After a few minutes, Mickey cleared his eyes and glanced at the headstone he'd been leaning on. It was one of many in a large cemetery, but something about this one caught Mickey's eye. Specifically, the engraving.

SCROOGE MCDUCK

LIVED HAUGHTILY

DIED PAINFULLY

Before the famous rodent could even process what he'd just read, Scrooge's ghost floated out of the ground in front of him. Looking at the tombstone, he chuckled. "'Died painfully'? Those ghosts really do have a sense of humor. A bad one, admittedly, but at least they try.

"S-s-Scr-Scrooge!" stammered Mickey. "H-How are you alive?"

"I'm not!" snapped the ghostly duck. "Isn't that obvious?!"

Goofy and Clarabelle noticed him and their mouths dropped open. "But ya just died!" protested the Goof. "How'd yer gravestone show up so fast?"

"My dear dumb Goof, I've been dead and a ghost for years now, including the last several hours I've been with you and your friends. Didn't you notice how pale I was? And how else could the beast have passed right through me? Think a little for once!"

"How'd you die?" asked Clarabelle curiously.

"In very painful ways that I do not wish to discuss. Now, the three of you must be on your way. You have a journey to complete, and I certainly won't be accompanying you. Now, once you get to the far corner of the Haunted Mansion grounds, find the overgrown path that lies there. Once you've followed it for a while, you'll came to the last dangerous stretch of your journey. The path becomes naught but a narrow stretch of dirt, with steep and tall cliffs to either side. One mis-step and you'll fall off. But falling off accidentally isn't what you'll have to worry about. Oh no, it's falling off on purpose that's the trouble here."

"Haw, we'd never fall off a cliff on purpose!" exclaimed Goofy. "Even I'm not that dumb."

"Well, let me explain. To the right side of the path lies traps and fires and all sorts of things that will torture you and kill you even if you somehow survive the fall. It's a hellish place. But even worse is the left side. It tempts you with mirages. It gets inside your mind and preys on your weaknesses, showing you all you desire and all that you want to see. The whole premise of it is encourage to take just one step toward it. One step towards your immediate death. Don't do that. Ignore the left side and remain unafraid of the right. Only then will you make it through."

"A'yuck, that path's nothin'. You shoulda seen this one hike I took, up on the tippity top o' good ol' Everest- - -"

"That's nice," said Mickey absentmindedly. "Let's go."

**Thanks for reading! Leave a review and share your thoughts. Mickey and co. are almost to the city. The story will end up going in a totally different direction then. **


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